Fast And Effective Methods To Siphon Gas From A Car
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All preppers know the importance of resources, and its one of the things that define the prepper mindset.
Survivalists and bushcrafters often have very valuable and useful skills that can help in a SHTF scenario, but its the reserve and particular skill set of the prepper to be able to combine these skills with a mind for resource management, preservation and opportunism, which can make all the difference in a dire scenario.
One of the most important, common, and valuable resources in the modern world is fuel, and while there are more electric vehicles on the road than ever and there is continual pressure to become more sustainable and use alternative fuel sources, gas and fossil fuels remain the dominant method of powering our cars, generators and other essential energy sources.
In normal day to day society, this isnt a huge problem, at least from a logistical point of view.
Youre never more than a few miles away from a gas station, and you can always call a friend to bail you out or even call for roadside assistance should you run the tank dry.
In short, while fuel can get pretty expensive depending on global factors, its pretty much readily available and isnt that hard to come by, even in the most remote areas of the US and other areas of the modern world.
One of the best ways to find and scavenge fuel is to siphon it from the tanks of abandoned or unused vehicles.
In Which Situations Is It A Good Idea To Siphon My Cars Gas
This website is all about car maintenance, protection, and good practice, so the official answer is: never.
In almost every imaginable situation, there is a better alternative. These include:
- Storing jerry cans of gasoline in a safe location well in advance.
- Bringing full jerry cans along with you on a road trip.
- Getting a lift to a gas station .
- Getting to a gas station some other way with jerry cans.
You should have exhausted all of these options before you even consider siphoning fuel from a newer car.
Note: if you have an older model , there isnt much to stop you. You wont damage the vehicle, and its easy to insert a standard hose and begin siphoning. This article concentrates explicitly on newer cars.
Producing Pressure In The Tank To Siphon Gasoline
If you dont have a professional siphon tool on hand, but have a considerably longer tube or two different siphon hoses, you can use the air pressure siphoning technique.
Siphoning is the process of sucking gas through a pipe or tubing into a new container. Although clear tubing is preferable because it allows you to see the gasoline move through the hose, opaque tubing will work just fine whenever youre in an emergency situation because theres no risk of fuel getting into your mouth.
This method involves inserting a pipe into the gas tank and putting the other end into a gas can sitting on the ground. The air pressure in the tank will likely push the standing fluid into the tubing and cause it to flow through to the other end, forming a coherent and consistent flow of liquid.
Due to airflow and the collaborative nature of fluids, the gas will continue to flow. You can speed up the process by using a pump to quickly create air pressure on the exiting end of the pipe and get the gas making its way to the canister quicker.
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How To Siphon Gas From A Newer Car
If youre reading this far, its assumed that youre in a dire emergency. If you arent, please find another option, such as those listed above.
Below, youll find the necessary instructions to siphon gas from a newer car.
Please note most modern cars and trucks have advanced anti-siphon components. Youll most likely find that the method listed below doesnt work.
Each manufacturer designs its own anti-siphon techniques. In most cases, you need to get a tiny pipe past a minuscule opening at an impossible angle all while you cant see anything. In short, yet again, get your gas another, better way. Dont waste your time.
What Is The Easiest Way To Get Gas Out Of A Car
Pump your hand pump until gas comes out. Hold onto the end of the hose, as it can start to move when the gas begins to flow. If you don’t have a pump, but you have a spare tube, stick that in as well. Then, blow into this spare tube, pushing air into the tank, which will then force the gas out of your other tube.
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Why Its Important To Use Good Technique To Siphon Gas
Siphoning gas is an incredibly valuable skill, and it can save your skin in several different ways, but it does carry some risks which can be potentially dangerous if done incorrectly, and its certainly not as simple as the movies make it out to be.
If you do it incorrectly you can potentially cause aspiration, which is where foreign objects or liquids enter the lungs and cant be removed.
This can cause all kinds of complications, from pneumonia to a come or even death, all of which will naturally have a pretty big knock on effect on your prepping plans
Learning the correct way to do this however will allow you to take advantage of a likely totally untapped or ignored resource, which can give you an advantage over the uninitiated and massively improve your prepping skillset and survivability.
The simplest method of siphoning is to put the end of a hose into a gas tank and the other end into a gas can.
Position the can below the height of the gas tank, and the gravity and air pressure in the tank should allow the gas to flow down into the can naturally, due to the nature of suction, pressure and liquid cohesion.
However lets get a little more in depth for those of you who are interested in the nitty gritty of technique.
Can You Siphon Gas From A Newer Car
In reality, no. Newer cars are fitted with anti-siphon components.
In your current situation, you might see them as a frustration. However, theyve made it almost impossible for thieves to steal your fuel.
Thats a good thing. It used to happen all the time. All a thief had to do was open the fuel filler cap, insert a hose, and siphon all your paid-for gasoline into cans.
Put it another way have you ever had gas siphoned from your car illegally? Almost certainly not. Thats because its nigh-on impossible now.
There might be ways around the anti-siphon as a list-ditch resort in an emergency, but it would be much better to prepare in advance. Youll be taking a significant risk and could permanently damage your car.
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The 3 Easiest Ways To Siphon Gas
Please share!
My father was a car dealer for over 35 years. As a young child, I remember learning how to manually siphon gas. The thing that stuck in my memory the most was that my dad had to spit out the gas after sucking the tube to get the gas flowing. That was 40 years ago, surely there is a better way of doing it now?
When it comes to siphoning gas, there are three main methods siphoning using air pressure, siphoning using a siphon pump, and siphoning manually by sucking on a tube.
The best way to siphon gas is by using air pressure. You need two tubes, one at least 5 feet long and the other about 1 foot long. Ideally, they should each be 1 inch in diameter.
Or, if you want to do it the easiest way possible you should use a pump, like this inexpensive one.
The rest of this article will walk you through each of these different methods and the best way to perform them. Also, Ill point out some of the problems these methods have regarding performance and your health.
How To Easily Siphon Gas Out Of A Car Cargister
Knowing how to siphon gas from a car or any other vehicle is important. That said, it is not taught as often as it used to be. Many people think of thieves when they think of siphoning gas, so its popularity has waned in recent decades.
However, being able to siphon gas can be important if you are in an emergency, on a long road trip, or even winterizing or performing maintenance on your vehicle.
For these reasons and more, it is important to know how to siphon gas from a car safely. Just make sure you use it for noble purposes and nothing nefarious.
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Disconnect Fuel Line And Drain Fuel
Instead of trying to bypass the anti-siphon screen and/or valve, you can access the fuel from the other side of the tank. To do this:
- Locate the fuel line.
- Disconnect the fuel line. You may need a special tool for this . Its possible to make your own fuel disconnect tool. See this video.
- Attach a hose to the end of the fuel line. Direct the other end of the hose into your canister.
- Turn the car on. The fuel pump will cause the gas to flow out of the tank and into the canister. Youll need to keep turning the car on/off to keep the gas flowing.
- If you cannot turn on the car, you can instead jump the fuel pump relay terminals. This can be done with the engine off if you have a jumper. I havent tried this but, according to one source, on Toyotas, you can put a paperclip on the test plug in the engine to jump the fuel pump.
Siphoning Gas Using A Siphon Pump
The last method were going to discuss is using a siphon pump. Now, this is very different from the air pump we mentioned in the previous section a siphon pump is a special type of pump that is entirely dedicated to siphoning gas from a car.
As the saying goes, its better to have and not need it, and a siphon pump, like this one, should definitely be in your car emergency toolkit.
You can imagine that this method is definitely the easiest out of all the techniques weve discussed so far because the pump basically does all the work for you. However, this also makes it pretty shocking that very few people have one prepared in case of emergencies. So again, it relates back to the idea that most people never anticipate that theyre going to be in that kind of situation.
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Can You Pump Gas Out Of A Car
Purchase a fuel siphon system. Sold at most auto stores, these are manually operated pumps that will draw the gas out of your car and into a container. … You could swallow gasoline or spill enough to create a serious fire hazard. Have a fire extinguisher specifically for gas fires nearby in case of a fire.
Siphoning Fuel From A Gas Tank Was Easy
In the past, I can remember when we used to siphon gas out of our gas tanks to fuel our lawn mowers or other small engines. Siphoning gas out of the older vehicles was easy, but when was the last time you tried to siphon gas out of a car?
It has been years since I have tried. In a real disaster, like an EMP strike, obtaining gas from damaged vehicles may be necessary to keep older vehicles running when a gas station may not be available. This got me wondering how to siphon gas from the new cars.
NOTE: Wondering if any vehicles will still be operating after an EMP? Be sure to read my note at the bottom of this article. If youve read One Second After, you may be surprised by my findings.
A little research into modern-day siphoning revealed that all new cars have an anti-rollover valve on all the openings in a gas tank. These valves, also known as anti-siphon valves, act as a siphon prevention system. This is the reason why nearly all the siphon devices and pumps sold these days are useless. However, there is a way to do it without damaging the vehicle if you have the right tools.
Most gas thieves today simply drill a hole in the gas cap, take what they can, and let the rest run out on the ground.
But there is another way.
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How To Siphon Gas With A Hose By Mouth Suction
We have already looked at mouth or suction siphoning. Frankly, this is a dangerous method and should be used only as a last resort.Most importantly, never swallow the gas or inhale the fumes. In case you feel dizzy, step away and take some time to recover.Youll only need a single piece of transparent, clear hose or tubing of 1-inch diameter for this method.Step 1 Insert one end of the tube into the gas tank and make sure its submerged deep inside the gas. To check, you can blow in the tube. If you hear the bubbles, its deep enough.Step 2 Now start sucking from the free end of the tube till the gasoline comes out. Place your fingers below your mouth, in order to crimp the tube and stop the flow. Remember, the whole thing happens very fast. So you need to be careful.Step 3 Once you see the gasoline rising through the tube, crimp the tube and insert the end into the gas container immediately. Now youll get a steady flow of gas from the siphon hose. In case you see bubbles rising through the hose, you may need to redo the process. But make sure to empty the hose first before you start sucking again.
How To Siphon Gas Using A Siphon Pump
The steps to siphon gas using a siphon pump are very easy to follow:
- Step 1: You begin by opening your fuel tank and gas container, and you connect the tubes of the siphon pump into the corresponding parts. The siphon pump should distinguish which piece is for what part.
- Step 2: After connecting the pump, you simply squeeze the bulb until the gas begins the flow.
- Step 3: After the gas starts flowing, you can stop squeezing, and it should continue to keep flowing naturally.
- Step 4: In order to stop the flow, you simply disconnect the pump. Its recommended that you raise the level of the pump above the fuel tank when you want to stop so that the excess gas will flow back into the tank.
So as you can see, this method is straightforward to perform, and it practically requires no work or effort. And what also makes it great is that you only need one piece of equipment to do it you dont need any tubes or extra rags. As a result, there are essentially no drawbacks to using a siphon pump, so this should be the method that you should try to use in all cases.
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Situations In Which You May Need To Siphon Gas
There are situations in which knowing how to siphon gas could be useful. The two main ones are for winterizing cars that are only used seasonally and removing gas from a car that requires an empty gas tank to be repaired safely and properly.
Even though gas can separate over time, youll want to remove the old gas from the tank in both of these cases. The longer the gas is isolated, the worse its likely to be, both for gas performance and for your cars gas tank and fuel system.
In some cases, emergency services may be able to come and give you a ride to the nearest gas station, but not every country is able to send highway emergency workers to the more remote areas of their country. If help isnt immediately available, your safest choice may be to siphon a few liters of fuel from another vehicle, preferably friends or family who have been following you.
Otherwise, a kind driver may pull over and offer you enough gas to get you to the next gas station. You may also have to siphon gas out of a vehicle if you think the gas is contaminated or if you need to perform certain types of car maintenance.
How Do I Safely Siphon Gas From A Tank
Our 2003 Windstar was recently totaled in an accident . This happened the day after we filled the tank.
Before we hand over the car to the insurance, we’d like to get the fuel out of the tank to use in our new car. I tried siphoning the tank with a siphon pump but I can’t seem to get the hose to go all the way into the tank.
Can anyone explain why this method doesn’t work, and/or what workarounds I can use to recover the fuel?
- I edited your question to remove your request to retag , but you’ll need to approve my edit to remove the tag request. Thank you!Mar 27, 2011 at 1:20
- 1I like my older cars. Two different idiots pumped gasoline in my brother’s diesel on two separate occasions. Both times, we were able to siphon the gasoline out without any problems. jmort253Mar 27, 2011 at 1:24
- @MarkJohnson – We may have done that too. That’s what the forums recommended in order to keep from hurting the engine.
There is a trap for lack of a better word to describe in a lot of filler necks to prevent siphoning of the fuel. On the back side of where you put the fuel in you should see two hoses, one large and one small. Take the small hose off at the filler neck and use that as the entry point to put the hose in.
The picture below is a typical fuel filler neck, you can see where the hoses attach, you can pull either of them off, but depending on the fuel level pulling the large on off may spill fuel.
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